POLICE have warned that innocent people in Coventry and Warwickshire could get “caught in the crossfire” if trouble breaks out between rival biker gangs at a local festival.

They called for the annual Bulldog Bash to be stopped, amid heightened fears of violence.

Two years ago Hells Angel Gerry Tobin was shot dead on the M40 by men from Coventry and Warwickshire.

And police told a licensing panel that there was a serious risk of trouble breaking out at the event this year.

But the panel of three councillors in Stratford decided to let the festival go ahead on August 6.

They said that they had been presented with no evidence that the annual event at Long Marston Airfield, near Stratford, was “anything other than a well-managed public event” organised by law-abiding individuals.

The committee’s chairman, Coun Stephen Thirlwell, said it was dismissing the police application.

He said: “The panel recognises there may be tensions between rival gangs of motorbikers, and has taken police evidence of incidents into consideration, but it is not satisfied of any link between such events and the running of the Bulldog Bash.

“Given its history and the controls which are in place, we do not believe that the risk is at such a level that further interference is necessary.”

The committee also decided not to tighten the entry procedures for the four-day festival.

Mr Thirlwell added: “Taking the evidence in the round, we have found the evidence of genuine associations with Bulldog Bash and serious crime to be tenuous at best.”

The festival was granted a 10-year licence by the council last May.

But Warwickshire Police sought a review of the licence, claiming tensions between Hells Angels and the Outlaws following the jailing of seven men for rioting at Birmingham Airport, posed a serious risk to the public.

Counsel for the force Simon Walsh said: “This is not the same case as the case put forward last year.

“Of course much of the background is similar, but events that have taken place since that hearing mean that the risk has increased.

“The heightened risk means we must do something. We need to take proactive steps...to ensure the safety of the citizens of this county.”

In a statement, the Assistant Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police, Bill Holland, also voiced fears that innocent members of the public may be “caught in the crossfire” if violence erupted.

He said: “I am satisfied that the Bulldog Bash Limited is made up of members of the Hells Angels and their close associates, and that the Hells Angels are involved in serious and organised crime.

“There has previously been serious, including fatal, violence connected to the event and this poses a serious risk.”

Michael Bromley-Martin QC, representing the organisers of the event, said: “There is no evidence whatsoever that the Hells Angels organisation, as opposed to individual members of the organisation, are involved in organised crime.”

The police later insisted they would look at further options and stood by their warning.